Creating Connections
ORGANISATIONS AND COMMUNITY
In this month’s Creating Connections column, Sarah explores how different organisations, groups and events enhance the quilting community!
When I stitched those first patchwork squares together all those years ago, I literally had no idea where my journey would take me. I could never have imagined back then that I would one day become a part of a wonderful global quilting community, making friends for life, and end up sharing my words, patterns, quilts and even a podcast with the world. It’s a community I’m forever grateful for, and one I’m so proud to be a part of.
It’s with thanks to many organisations, publications (such as Today’s Quilter!) and events that enable us to enjoy our shared passion. So, I thought I’d take a closer look at some of the ways we are brought together, and how we are all connected both online and in person, through this wonderful pastime called quilting.
The Quilters’ Guild
“It’s a community I’m forever grateful for, and one I’m so proud to be a part of”
Starting right here at home, we have, published in 1978 had been instrumental in bringing people together, providing organised quilting events and enabling contact and the exchange of ideas. When this venture lost momentum, many of those members were keen to build on the connections that had been made; and these people became the majority of the attendees at the very first Quilters’ Guild meeting. The Guild today is now 42 years old and thriving. With a network of regions across the country, regular sewing days, meet ups, events, seminars, charity projects, an annual AGM, the publication of magazine and a large and influential presence at The Festival of Quilts each year, The Guild has been instrumental in bringing British quilters together. There are special interest groups, from the British Quilt Study Group, Contemporary Quilts, Miniature Quilts, the Modern Quilt Group and the Traditional Quilt Group, all of which are a chance to connect with like-minded quilters that share similar passions and interests. There’s also a division called Young Quilters, aimed at quilters aged between 5 and 18, who even have their own website – – and newsletter. Not even endless lockdowns could dampen The Guild’s activities, and education and shared learning remain at the heart of what they do, along with, of course, curating and preserving a wonderful quilt collection that represents British quilting through the ages. To find out more about The Quilters’ Guild and how to get involved, do visit .
